Stay on target

Get ready for the mildest of Star Wars: The Last Jedi spoilers, because I have a name and a face for you. The name is DJ, though it could be a code name because that’s literally the least Star Wars-sounding name imaginable next to “Mike Johnson.” The face is Benicio del Toro’s. And the Hasbro action figure is unsettlingly realistic, thanks to technology.

I met with Hasbro at New York Comic-Con, where they showed off new Star Wars and Marvel action figures planned for the holiday season and 2018. On the Star Wars side we’ve already seen some of the bigger items from the Force Friday reveal, but this was the first close look we got at the 6-inch Black Series DJ action figure.

This is one of the first 6-inch figures made using a new printing process to produce realistic faces. And when it comes to Benny del T, it’s upsettingly realistic. I love it.

According to the Hasbro representatives I talked to, 6-inch action figures were previously painted used a stamping system. The new process uses a printer-like inkjet system to produce much finer facial details. The result is a DJ who looks like he just came out of a crossover between Sicario and Small Soldiers.

I really, really want to see a 6-inch version of The Collector now. Ooh, or a short-packed Grandmaster from Thor: Ragnarok (though that doesn’t seem to be in the cards). Basically, any weird character actor I want to see using this new tech. Make Vincent D’Onofrio Kingpin, Hasbro!

Okay, the new tech extends beyond weirdos. The new Rey figure for The Last Jedi looks impressively like Daisy Ridley, and is much more realistic than the Black Series figure for The Force Awakens. I didn’t see Luke Skywalker or Poe Dameron figures using the new process, but I expect they’re coming next year. Collectors will want realistic Mark Hamill and Oscar Isaac in 6-inch format.

On the Marvel side, the MCU’s favorite woobie Tom Hiddleston looks absurdly charming with the new paint process, and even though half of her face is painted like a juggalo, Cate Blanchett’s Hela looks great, too.

Currently the new facial painting system will only be on 6-inch Star Wars Black Series and Marvel Legends figures; the 3 3/4-inch format is too small for the technology, and the 12-inch Marvel Legends figures get their own treatment. The new figures will be released alongside their respective movies, or in Q1 or next year.